Kevin Perz took the idea of giving his favorite teacher an apple to another level.

The Kansas businessman stunned the woman who was his beloved home economics teacher from 37 years ago with a surprise telephone call–and later a $10,000 thank-you check.

Perz, who attended Parkway Central High School in Missouri, expressed his gratitude in a letter to Marilyn Mecham using bold letters, "You were the B-E-S-T teacher EVER!"

After years of working with the alumni association to search for Mrs. Mecham, he finally found her son's phone number, which led to a January reunion.

The monetary gift included a handwritten note with implicit instructions to spend the money only on herself, noting that he'd be sad otherwise.

Mecham, now 62, was a first-year teacher in 1977 when she taught Perz and his classmates how to cook.

She was overwhelmed by his kindness, and said she would've been happy with just the surprise phone call.

Perz's penchant for mailing money to former teachers began in 1992 when he sent a $5,000 check to his former calculus teacher. Twenty years later he gave his business instructor $10,000, according to ABC News.

Honoring his gift request, Mecham plans to visit her family's homelands of Norway and Sweden.

Mecham runs a charitable effort now and says the event made her stop and think, ‘who do I want to thank'. Additionally, her post on Facebook about the incident caused many friends and strangers to comment about the teachers in their own lives who made a difference.

MULTIPLY the Good by Sharing (below) / Photo Credits – Marilyn Mecham Twitter